Jonathan Calder

‘Yorkshire’s inglorious moors and the lies of the land’: article in Yorkshire Bylines by David Robson An article criticising moorland mismanagement, including grouse moor management, has been published by Yorkshire Bylines. It’s been authored by David Robson, a retired biology teacher and a m…

‘Yorkshire’s inglorious moors and the lies of the land’...

raptorpersecutionuk.org/2025/08/05/y...

Meme. Painting of a river bank, showing an eel weir in the water, and some eel traps on the bank, as well as a long pole. There is a half-finished trap leaning against a tree, and there are two fish on the bank next to a small net. Someone is really into fishing. The scene is warm and inviting, like a late-summer afternoon. You want to sit on the bank, put your toes in the water, and forget about the troubles of the world. It's a moment that demands sweet tea or some such drink. You can lie back and close your eyes, listening to the sounds of the rippling water and feeling a part of the universe. All while ignoring the life-and-death struggles that happen in the weir traps right in front of you. This is not a bucolic scene for the eels. It's a killing ground. But you? You can ignore that and ease into the oneness with time and space. You're a monster, really. But don't worry. We all are, in our way. Meme text reads: "Eels in the water. His eels. Weir gonna need a bigger net."

English eel-rents had vanished by 1700. But landlords still wanted their eels!

In 1781 the fishery at Wickham's Weir in Cuddesdon was leased for £9 per year & no eels. But the tenant did have to sell his landlord eels "of a good size" at the below-market price of 7d. per pound.
🗃️🧪

🎶Do jump off the roof, Dad🎶

Reporters shouted to ask what he was doing up there and he said he was "taking a little walk." He said something about the White House ballroom and made some gestures but it's not really making a ton of sense yet. Normal stuff

Pop Gear - Wikipedia

It's from this film - I suppose the B&W original has been lost.

Trump on roof

Trump on roof

(h/t @helenkennedy.bsky.social)

Exciting times at Craven Arms station.

HMRC could reclaim money saved using schemes to avoid VAT on school fees, experts say More than £500m was deposited into schemes used to pay fees upfront before VAT announcement Money saved using schemes to avoid paying VAT on private school fees could be clawed back by the government, tax experts have said, after it was revealed that the schemes had raised more than £500m. Analysis by the Daily Telegraph found that the UK’s wealthiest private schools took in £500m last year through “fee in advance” schemes. Parents who paid before the official announcement that VAT would be added to school fees hoped to avoid paying the extra 20% applied from January this year. Continue reading...

HMRC could reclaim money saved using schemes to avoid VAT on school fees, experts say

Herefordshire canal trust hopes to restore off-road city route - BBC News We would do the actual work ourselves," said the trust's Tony Higgins of the plans for Hereford.

"The Herefordshire and Gloucestershire Canal Trust said restoring the link from Aylestone Park to the transport hub at the railway station, which is currently being built, would be a good fit with the city's transport plans."

LIMF 2025 — Leicester International Music Festival

Pleased bring you exciting news of our Festival September 17-20, with a great team led by Nicholas Daniel. Vibrant Landscapes: Franz Schubert, Maurice Ravel & Emma-Ruth Richards.
More info at: www.leicesterinternationalmusicfestival.org.uk/limf-2025

2,000+ Jews gathered in Columbus Circle this evening to say No More to starvation and ethnic cleansing.

Led by rabbis, they of them moved to the front of Trump Tower, read the names of Palestinian children killed, and said Kaddish.

The NYPD is currently arresting dozens of them.

Replica of Glenfield cauldron sheds light on Iron Age life The vessel has been made based on 2,400-year-old fragments found in an excavation near Leicester.

That's a mighty fine cauldron!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

"It's just fields and fields of gray ash."

www.instagram.com/reel/DM8H5L2...

I can thoroughly recommend Sidney Gilliat’s GREEN FOR DANGER and the source novel by Christianna Brand. #FilmSky #BookSky 💙📚

Illustration of a chambered tomb on the right-hand side and scattered boulders, a few apparently showing 'cup and ring' marks. A half-moon illuminates the scene

Spot illustration of a cromlech by Lawrence Scarfe for his 1940s book 'Three Ghosts'. It doesn't appear to be relevant to any of the three stories in the book, so we will just have to assume that Scarfe liked #Neolithic landscapes. But then, who doesn't?
#TombTuesday #illustration #booksky #artsky

Shelagh Delaney in Salford, 7th August 1961, photo by Arnold Newman.

Shelagh, take a bow. (Shelagh Delaney in Salford, 7th August 1961, photo by Arnold Newman).

My cats Jim, Charles and Roscoe

Jim and Roscoe trying to patch things up, in the aftermath of a failed attempt at polyamorous relationships.

Roscoe and Charles, considering the ultimate futility of all feline endeavours.

Arrived in the living room only to find I was interrupting our cats during the making of their debut French new wave film.

YouTube video by RobsOldVideos Spencer Davis Group - "My Babe"

Colour! Just wait till Stevie comes in... youtu.be/bIhKor02lJU?...

Stokesay Castle lunchtime.

Neville Cardus and Emmott Robinson remind us that gamesmanship is nothing new in cricket Back to Duncan Hamilton's biography of Neville Cardus, The Great Romantic . Anyone who believes gamesmanship is something new in cricket sho...

"Eventually, with the umpire's finger still raised, he turned and began plodding to the pavilion like a 'shire horse after a wearying day of ploughing'."

Terry Reid: “He didn’t see himself as the guy who missed out…” Although best remembered for turning down Led Zeppelin, Terry Reid was a vocalist of rare talent. MOJO pays tribute to the singer, who has died at the age of 75.

“He didn’t see himself as the guy who missed out.”

While perhaps best remembered for turning down the offer to join Led Zeppelin, Terry Reid was a vocalist of rare talent, heralded by Aretha Franklin among others. MOJO pays tribute to the singer dubbed “superlungs”, who has died aged 75...

Mary Webb’s book ‘Gone to Earth’.

60 odd pages into this and I am already feeling like I want to move to rural Shropshire and adopt a fox…
It is just BEAUTIFUL descriptive writing ❤️❤️ #BookSky💙📚

Noel Harrison: The Windmills of Your Mind In 1968 this song, which Noel Harrison performed on the soundtrack of The Thomas Crown Affair, won the Oscar for Best Original Song. The pre...

Liberal England Gold...

Noel Harrison: The Windmills of Your Mind (post may contain trivia)

Tommy Robinson bailed after arrest on suspicion of grievous bodily harm Far-right activist was detained at Luton airport on Monday a week after incident at St Pancras station in London The far-right activist known as Tommy Robinson has been released on bail by police after being arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm. Robinson, 42, was detained on Monday evening at Luton airport after a man was allegedly assaulted at a London railway station a week earlier. Continue reading...

Tommy Robinson bailed after arrest on suspicion of grievous bodily harm

Wes Streeting: ‘half my colleagues’ in Commons using weight loss drugs Health secretary says the drugs are the ‘talk of the House of Commons tea rooms’ as he vows to widen access to jabs

These people have no idea what they're doing.

Wes Streeting: ‘half my colleagues’ in Commons using weight loss drugs | Obesity | The Guardian share.google/dbqHNHGMqNBr...

Lindsay Hoyle blocks release of emails he sent to Israeli politicians

NEW: Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle has personally intervened to block the release of emails he sent to Israeli politicians

A Fish Falls From the Sky and Sparks a Brush Fire in British Columbia The New York Times wins our Headline of the Day Award. It's believed the Mounties are looking for the osprey responsible.

Officials say a flying osprey dropped its catch, which then struck power lines, causing sparks that ignited dry grass.

The actual National Allotment Society is pretty relaxed about it...

In 2022, Nadhim Zahawi’s solicitor sent me a libel threat - and said I wasn’t even allowed to say he’d written to me.

The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal ruled that was improper.

Now he’s appealing.

A 🧵 on why it matters.

The rich must be incentivised; the poor must be disciplined.

The political economy of the super-elite in one headline.